A Family
by MagentaQuinn
Summary: What if James and Lily weren't taken away that October night? What if they lived, to start A Family? Everything goes well for the Potters... until tragedy strikes, in the most unusual ways.


For Jayna, AKA: Slythindorgirl1

Happy birthday, baby! I own nothing except the OC's. All rights to to JK Rowling. And check out Slythindorgirl1!

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October thirty first, 1981, started out as a fairly odd day. Lily slept through the alarm, James burnt his toast, and little Harry's toddler food had gone bad. As the day progressed, it got worse and worse. The car wouldn't start, the television's reception was funny, and lunch was forgotten completely. Luckily, that night, everyone's bed had never been more endearing, and they went to sleep without a problem. Harry, only a year old, slept through the entire night, fairly unusual for him. James and Lily slept on until November 1981. The following morning, life was much better, and resumed as normal.

Nothing of interest happened to the Potter family, until two years later, and Lily was pregnant with her second child, another boy, who they would name Joshua. Lily's pregnancy went incredibly smoothly, and, eight months after she found out, she gave birth to a bouncing baby boy. Three years later, Lily was pregnant once again, with Mason, her third son.

Harry, six years old, loved taking care of Joshua, three at the time, but didn't like changing Mason's diapers. However, fate was cruel, forcing Harry, at the age of seven, to become much more involved with his brother's lives.

It was cold December when James Potter was taken. The healers said there was nothing they could do. James had always looked so healthy, so when he had a heart attack, it put them all off. While he was sitting in the bed, holding Lily's hand, he had a stroke. Harry never believed the healers . He saw his father's eyes roll back in his head, surely there was something, anything that could save him!

The flowers poured in, all through the New Year. Cards with "You're in our prayers" and "Thinking of you" sat on their mantle, half of them from people Harry had even met before. It's amazing how death brings enemies together, so they can pretend they care.

The new year brought old friends. Harry was introduced to a Mr. Snape, which he had never met before. Harry's skilled tongue could not pronounce 'Severus', however, so he settled on 'Uncle Sev'.

The days went by fairly quickly, Lily always having a smile on her face, going into super-mum mode. After dinner, however, when Mason was put down to sleep, her face got as dark as night. She would force herself to stop being a robot, and power down, locking herself in her room. Severus would get Josh into bed, and Harry would stay up until he got tired. He was only seven years old, and he didn't have a bedtime. Maybe that was a good thing, however. Once Sev had gotten Harry to bed, he knocked on Lily's door, and the crying would start. She had to put on a mask for her children, but after dark, it was gone. Each morning, after tossing and turning all night, Harry pretended he didn't hear anything.

Things weren't that bad, however. The days were good. Sev brought over his friends, the Malfoys, who had a son Harry's age. Lily, barely leaving the house any more, restricted him to Harry's play mate.

Draco Malfoy had a round little face, blonde hair that fell limply over his head, grey eyes, and an annoying smile. Half of the time Harry almost wanted to pop it off his face, and the other half of the time, his heart swelled a little that he was the one causing it. Because he'd never really been the most social person, and he never really had many friends, he thought this was normal.

Their friendship grew stronger and stronger over just a few weeks, to the point where they were practically inseparable.

Lily was over-joyed. Harry never smiled, after his father died. Draco seemed to talk through the empty spaces James had left in Harry, filling them to the brim. Luckily, Josh and Mason weren't quite old enough yet, so they didn't grip what death was, and why it was so bad.

A death can really leave a family unit broken. The strong Potter family of five soon weakened into four. Josh and Mason came together in their innocence, making the Potters smile at the worst of times. Harry came together with Draco Malfoy, proving that a light in the darkness can just be a round faced little blonde boy. Lily came together with Snape, showing love, even if it is unrequited, can be a support group.

Through the years, Lily started to smile again. It happened gradually. The tears would get quieter and quieter at night, until the gentle snore that filled Harry's early childhood rang through the house again.

The house seemed to get brighter and brighter. Even the always-gloomy weather of England seemed to clear up, and the sun would shine more often.

On the thirty first of July, 1991, Lily sat Harry down, taking both of his hands in hers, and placing a letter in between them. "Harry. You know how Sev is a teacher, yes? And I've always said that he taught magic." She smiled, leaning over to kiss Harry's head when his attention was drawn away by Draco. "Listen to your mum. Now, magic is quite a silly thing. Magicians at birthday parties, they're different from what Sev has, and what I have." She grinned as Harry's face lit up. "That's right, your mum's a witch. Your father was a wizard too, you know. Soon, you'll be going to a school that we both went to, and Sev teaches at. It's called Hogwarts," she said delicately. "Because you have magic blood coursing through your veins, love, you have magic too. You're a wizard, Harry."

The boys eyes lit up, causing him to laugh a little, take his hands away, and tear into the letter. Sure enough, there it was, in black and white. "Is Draco a wizard too, Mum?"

Lily had to restrain a giggle that was building up in her throat. Those two were closer than brothers. "Yes, he is. He comes from a very powerful wizarding family, you know." She reached over to tuck a piece of hair behind Harry's ear, and he dodged her hand. "You're growing up," she said, feeling a lump in her throat. Hot tears started to spring into her eyes, but she pushed them away. "You'll be leaving this September."

Harry nodded in affirmation. He was a wizard! Before he knew it, he ran over to Draco, and pulled him into a tight hug. He knew nothing of the mechanics of Hogwarts. He didn't know that in just a few months, the Sorting Hat would place him and Draco in the same house, Ravenclaw. Draco for exhibiting astounding knowledge; Harry because he wanted to be placed with Draco, as well as because he was sassy, and the hat liked that. He didn't know anything, what this feeling meant, and what might be in store. All he knew was that how perfect it felt to be hugging Draco, and how much he liked Draco hugging back.

If this was how it was how being a wizard would be, this light, fluttering feeling in his heart, he could get used to it. Was this how his father felt, when he was told he was a wizard, or was this how he felt when he met Lily? In that moment, he didn't care, really. He was going to follow in his father's footsteps, and become a powerful wizard. 'And maybe, just maybe,' he thought, looking sheepishly at Draco after he pulled away from the hug, 'I'll fall in love along the way.'


End file.
